If Hollywood’s latest female superhero Captain Marvel is looking for a new car, then Range Rover’s new second-generation Evoque could be just the ticket for her.

Not only does this smart and sassy compact luxury SUV feature clever X-Ray vision that enables the driver to see what dangers and potholes lurk out of sight under the vehicle on or off the road, it also has eyes in the back of its head that give you a much clearer view of what’s looming behind.

It even has a Vegan option of soft and stylish interior fabrics using recycled plastic bottles and plant-based fibres as an alternative to traditional leather, and has been planned from the start with electrification and hybrid power in mind.

And I was among the first to test drive this mini-marvel at its global launch this week in Greece – home of the ancient superheroes.

SUV that turns you into a superhero: Ray Massey drives the second-generation Range Rover Evoque - the 4X4 that gives you X-Ray vision and eyes in the back of your head

Designed with women in mind, it’s pretty meaty for men too.

For a 4X4 that, in reality, will see most of its action zipping around in town and city, on school runs, family outings and shopping and social trips from London’s Kensington to Leeds, and Edinburgh’s Morningside, it certainly coped with some nerve-tingling tests off-road as well as on.

This includes a precarious driver across a single-track disused railway bridge more than 150 feet above the Corinth canal in Greece - the ideal nerve-racking location to try out a very clever piece of the new Evoque’s advanced technology.

In what Jaguar Land Rover is hailing as a world- first, the X-Ray vision allowed me to look through the bonnet to view on the dashboard screen what lies out of sight on the road below.

Earlier, while crawling off-road over rocks and rough terrain, I’d been looking at solid potential hazards.

Now I was peering down at railway track, sleepers and – through the cracks in the bridge – the water far below. Scary, but a useful in this rare scenario.

The system called ClearSight Ground View - which is a £575 optional extra - uses cameras mounted in the front grille and on the door mirrors project their view onto the central touchscreen of the 4X4 so the driver can see in a 180 degree view what is ahead of and underneath the front of the vehicle.

It has a practical use in an urban environment by helping drivers spot high city centre kerbs when parking, and avoid scuffing their wheels.

Land Rover first signalled the X-Ray technology in 2014 but this is its first use in a showroom vehicle available to customers.

Ray tested out the new technology while driving across a single-track disused railway bridge more than 150 feet above the Corinth canal in Greece

The ClearSight Ground View - costing £575 - lets you see what lurks below the car

While the system will rarely be used for driving over old railway bridges, motorists will be able to check how close they are to high kerbs and potholes

The new Evoque 4X4 also has eyes in the back of its head thanks to a smart rear-view mirror specifically designed to overcome a problem with the restricted view through letter-box shaped rear window which, while it allows the SUV to look sleek, is not great for visibility.

To overcome this, the traditional reflective rear view mirror transforms at the flick of a switch into a high definition video screen displaying the images from a rear-facing camera positioned above the rear window.

Again, you have to pay extra for the feature - a fairly hefty £450.

The picture is pin sharp. And thanks to a wider 50-degree field of vision it’s like watching a hi-definition movie in Cinemascope.

But the beauty is that it means the driver’s view also remains unrestricted by passengers or large items of luggage or kit in the back. This technology also delivers clearer visibility in low light conditions.

‹Slide me›

The new Evoque 4X4 also has eyes in the back of its head thanks to a smart rear-view mirror. It switches from the traditional view to a camera screen at the flick of a switch

Ray Massey used the feature to peer down at railway tracks, sleepers and – through the cracks in the bridge – the water far below

This is what it looks like when you take a £39,000 (in this spec) SUV over a bridge 150 feet above a gorge

The camera is designed with a protective lip and a special water repellent coating to prevent mud and water spray soiling the lens.

If the the camera is ever obscured, drivers can change back to a traditional rear view mirror at the flick of a switch.

But the clever tech should not overshadow what a smart package the new Evoque provides and how fun and practical it is to drive. It’s an evolution rather than a revolution and doesn’t look radically different. The devil is in the detail.

It has an all new body shell. The slick 9-speed automatic gearbox has also been improved.

Thanks to a longer wheel-base, the new Evoque has more interior space and knee-room for rear passengers, 10 per cent more luggage space sufficient for a set of golf clubs, and extra cubby-hole storage. It also has new 21-inch wheels.

The clever off-roading tech meant it made mince-meat of rough gravel roads and coped far better than I expected with some fairly challenging rutted tracks, steep mountain inclines, and large rock-strewn tracks.

The clever tech should not overshadow what a smart package the new Evoque provides and how fun and practical it is to drive

It’s an evolution rather than a revolution and doesn’t look radically different. The devil is in the detail, says Ray Massey

Thanks to a longer wheel-base, the new Evoque has more interior space and knee-room for rear passengers

I also took it across and through a few streams and small rivers – conscious that it can now wade through 600mm of water – up by 100mm.

It can also hold itself when heading up a slippery steep incline, without rolling back.

For off-roading there are four main modes - Comfort, Sand, Grass-Gravel-Snow, and Mud & Ruts, plus a new Auto mode which by automatically selects the most appropriate setting for the conditions and adjusts the vehicle accordingly.

At launch is a range of 48-volt battery-aided mild hybrid 2.0-litre four-cylinder Ingenium petrol and diesel engines linked to a nine-speed automatic gearbox promising fuel economy of up to 50.4mpg.

The powertrain uses an engine mounted generator to harvest energy normally lost during deceleration and store it in the under-floor battery to give the car a boost when needed.

Ray Massey took the compact 4X4 across and through a few streams and small rivers – conscious that it can now wade through 600mm of water – up by 100mm

At speeds below 11mph the engine shuts off while the driver applies the brakes to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions

An eco-friendly three-cylinder plug-in hybrid version is to follow in 12 months’ time and there may even be an all-electric version

At speeds below 11mph the engine shuts off while the driver applies the brakes.

When the driver pulls away, the stored energy is redeployed to boost the engine under acceleration and thus reduce fuel consumption.

An eco-friendly three-cylinder plug-in hybrid version is to follow in 12 months’ time and there may even be an all-electric version.

Diesels will still be the biggest sellers, though.

I spent most time driving the very able Evoque S D240 in a fetching exterior shade of Firenze Red.

The comfortable interior and supportive seats were clad in the vegan-friendly - but very sophisticated - Cloud Eucalyptus textile and Ultrafabrics man-made cloths. The Evoque’s exterior design director Massimo Frascella is himself vegan.

The comfortable interior and supportive seats were clad in the vegan-friendly - but very sophisticated - Cloud Eucalyptus textile and Ultrafabrics man-made cloths

The Evoque’s exterior design director Massimo Frascella is himself vegan

Each new Evoque contains up to 33kg of recycled or natural material including a new Eucalyptus textile produced from natural fibres

Out on the road it’s a very comfortable and engaging drive and there’s plenty of pulling power, particularly in Sport.

On a pretty basic gravel track it operated like a sprightly rally car leaving dust trails in its wake.

Priced from £38,600, the model I had was well specced with kit (which will push up the price) including an airy panoramic roof, powered tail-gate, privacy glass, 10-way electric heated front seats, and lots of the off- and on-road technology designed to make life easier.

With 240 horsepower behind its efficient and clean Ingenium oil-burner engine, it accelerates briskly from rest to 60mph in 7.2 seconds (7.7 secs to 62mph) up to a top speed of 140mph, averaging 45.6mpg and with CO2 emissions of 163g/km.

I also drove the petrol R-Dynamic S P250 which was also pretty nimble, powered by a 249 horsepower 2.0-litre petrol engine which accelerates from rest to 60mph in seven seconds flat, up to a top speed of 143mph, while managing 35.8mpg with CO2 emissions of 180g/km.

The main range of the new second-generation Evoque which is reaching showrooms now is priced from £31,600 to £40,350, - with fully stocked First Edition models costing from £49,550 for the diesel D180HP all-wheel drive auto and £50,400 for the P250 249HP petrol all-wheel drive automatic.

The first generation Evoque was launched nine years ago in 2010 at Kensington Palace with the help of former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham who later went on to style – but not actually create from scratch - a blinged up £200,000 VB limited edition version bearing her name.

Since launch more than 772,00 Evoques been sold, one in five in the UK, and it has won more than 200 international awards.

The new Evoque also has other green credentials.

Each new Evoque contains up to 33kg of recycled or natural material including a new Eucalyptus textile produced from natural fibres.

It also features a non-leather Kvadrat suede-cloth option designed for vegetarians and vegans and made from 53 recycled plastic bottles per car.

It is also the first Land Rover to be equipped with advanced artificial intelligence software that learns the driver’s habits over time.

While it might be greener, there's no doubting the Evoque is still as stylish as cars come in this sector

Valuation experts expect the new Evoque to return class-leading residual value when deliveries begin in Spring

The new Evoque has 591 litres of boot space that increases to 1,383 litres with the flexible 40:20:40 second-row seats folded

The self-learning technology recognises the driver from their key fob and phone and will set up their seat and steering column position on approach, allowing for up to eight profiles to be registered.

After a few journeys, Evoque remembers the driver’s preferred temperature settings, media preferences and commonly dialled numbers depending on the time or day of the week – it will even remember seat massage settings.

It should hold its value too.

Independent pricing experts at cap hpi say the new baby Range Rover Evoque priced from £31,600 for the entry-level D150 FWD (with monthly deals from £245 per month after a £7,500 deposit) will enjoy class leading residual value when deliveries begin in Spring.

After three years or 36,000 miles the second-generation Evoque range will retain 63 per cent of its value on average with the best-performing Evoque R-Dynamic S P250 model costing £41,350 and keeping 67.4 per cent of its value.

It had a celebrity unveiling in November attended by Bodyguard star and Bond contender Richard Madden, supermodel David Gandy, Mollie King, singer Pixie Lott, and Millie Mackintosh at London’s Old Truman Brewery.